English Setter bumping birds

[settergeorge]

My English Setter is whoa trained but when he gets a scent of a bird he gets excited and bumps the bird he is not pointing, any advice would be much appreciated

[Ben_Berg]

There could be a number of things happening here.Your pup could be just running and not hunting,if this is the case I would suggest some orginized bird contact.If your dog is finding birds and has decided it would be more fun to flush them I would do some contact with a check chord so you can stop the dog and make the dog stand.It is a matter of identifying the problem and then giving him the proper exposure.I see this problem often and in many cases people wait to long to give young dogs bird exposure. We introduce dogs to birds at about 16 Weeks this seems to be the optimal age for our dogs.This will vary a little with different breeds,but a key to bird dog development.

Good luck with your pup.You are welcome to call me if I can help in other way.

Ben Berg

[Da Biggin]

I had that problem with my GSP and what worked for me was establishing with him that the retrieve was his reward for optimal performance. I would not shoot any bird he bumps. (He is much better at his end of the bargain than I am at mine lol) It may not be a bad idea to bring out the whoa board and use a live bird walking around for a stimuli as a means to reinforce whoa means right there regardless of the presence of birds.

I did that after going back to square one to ensure he understood each command and what it meant. I reinforced that training and applied it first in controlled settings (i.e. placed birds) then in settings with a few more variables (i.e. game farms). It took some time and became very frustrating after a while but in the end the hard work paid/pays off.

Good luck, Good hunting, and God bless!

[401TE]

How old is this dog and what kind of bird training has he/she had?

[Kyhl]

Ben brings up a good point. It would be helpful to know if the dog is running over the birds unknowingly or if he is picking up the scent then tracking to the bird and popping it.

If he's getting birdy, changing direction and zeroing in the bird with his nose leading him to the bird then a check cord and a bird trap might be the ticket.